Operations

Avon continuously evaluates how to reduce the environmental impact of our operations and in the manufacturing of our products. A worldwide network of our global environmental management team and Associates across various disciplines support our global policies, processes and goals.

As part of our efforts to mitigate and reduce our environmental impacts, we support sustainable building practices. Through Avon’s Green Building Promise,we are committed to designing and building new facilities, as well as making renovations to existing facilities, in accordance with the U.S. Green Building Council's Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System™ certification standards.

The LEED certification system promotes a comprehensive, holistic approach to sustainability, focusing on energy savings, water efficiency, carbon emissions reduction, and stewardship of natural resources. In countries where LEED certification does not exist, construction and renovation projects aim to meet equivalent standards.

Many scientists, as well as environmental and conservation organizations, agree that climate change is one of the greatest environmental issues today. Numerous factors contribute to climate change, from fossil fuel use to the burning and clearing of tropical forests. Understanding the role companies can play in addressing this issue, Avon became one of the first beauty companies to prioritize a focus on the reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions through our operations. This commitment began in 1994 when we joined the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Green Lights program and retrofitted many U.S. manufacturing and distribution sites with energy-efficient lighting.

We continue to focus on reducing our GHG emissions and energy consumption, as well as increasing the use of onsite renewable energy to reduce our carbon footprint. We aspire to achieve zero emissions by using 100 percent clean energy and we are proud of the progress we’ve made to reduce our absolute GHG emissions.

By 2020, our goal is to reduce absolute GHG emissions from Avon operations by 20 percent from 2005 baseline levels.

As of the end of 2013, we reduced absolute emissions by 28.7 percent from 2005. Although we are optimizing our carbon and energy use, we do expect our GHG emissions to fluctuate in the years leading up to 2020 due to potential growth of Avon's business and diminishing returns on our investments in our renwable energy efforts. Thereore, we are continuing to pursue our 2020 goal of a 20 percent GHG reduction.

Additionally, since 2005, we have reduced total energy consumption by 35 percent. The Avon Green Building Promise contributes to a reduction in energy and GHG emissions.

Avon's GHG emission estimates are compiled by First Environment, an independent environmental management consultant that is a leader in the GHG field. First Environment is a signatory to the CERES principles (Coalition for Environmentally Responsible Economies) and also maintains ISO 14001 certification.

Avon continues to take steps to use water wisely and conserve this resource, especially in water stressed parts of the world. We continue to implement projects to achieve zero water waste discharge in water-scarce countries where we operate—particularly in India, China and Brazil—and Avon’s manufacturing sites are committed to efforts to reduce water consumption.

By 2020, our goal is to reduce water intensity—water consumption per Avon manufacturing facility—by 40 percent from 2005 baseline levels.

As of the end of 2013, we reduced water intensity by 32 percent from 2005.

While we do not have the environmental footprint of a "brick and mortar" store, Avon ships hundreds of thousands of products every day. Over the past decade, we have introduced efficient shipping practices to reduce the environmental impacts of distributing our products, often partnering with transportation and logistics partners to leverage the best options and expertise.

The production and consumption of fuels is a significant contributor to global GHG emissions and other environmental impacts. Where possible, we urge our supply chain partners to minimize fuel consumption and to focus on sourcing fuel with the lowest environmental impacts and embedded carbon footprints. By doing so, we increase fuel efficiency, decrease transport miles and related emissions, and reduce costs.

We continue to evolve our service model to meet customers' needs and explore new ways to further reduce the environmental impacts of product distribution.

For example:

Regional distribution: All orders are shipped from regional distribution centers to reduce the distance that products travel to reach customers, including LEED-certified (or equivalent) distribution centers in Zanesville, Ohio, and Cabreuva, Brazil.

Improved shipping options: In the United States, our distribution system flags small orders—those consisting of five or fewer small-sized items that have a specified cubic volume— and packs them into padded envelopes, which use less material and require less shipping space than cartons used for larger items.

Optimizing shipping logistics: Partnering with local shippers, our logistics teams, such as those in Brazil, have undertaken a comprehensive analysis of shipping routes, developed optimization plans and substantially reduced the mileage, fuel and time expended on shipments.